Woman earns Ph.D at 23 years old

A 23-year-old student from North Carolina, who started college when she was 12, just earned a Ph. D. from the University of Wisconsin.

Julia was just 12 years old when she began her journey into higher education at Cape Fear Community College.

She went on to get her associates degree at 14, her bachelor's degree from UNCW at 16 and now her Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin at 23.

“Most of the people I’ve met, in my life, could have done what I did if they had the right support,” Julia said to reporter Bill Murray for WECT. "I don't fault my parents, pushing me, with regards to my education. Clearly, I could handle it and it worked. So they must have done something right."

“I’m so proud of her,” her mother, Nadine Nepper, said, according to WECT. “All that hard work has paid off. It’s hard to believe she was kept back in kindergarten that one year.”

Now that she has accomplished her goals of getting a Ph.D, the motivated 23-year-old has other ideas about what she wants to do in the future.

“I’ve been in college most of my life and I haven’t really been in the real world,” Julia said. “It’s exciting but actually scary to go out and get a job.”

The outlet also reports that Julia wants to leave the U.S. and work in Japan.